Sunday, 20 August 2017

BSBI training grants helping botanists in 2017: Part Three

Spittal of GlensheeImage: T. Jones

Following on from Richard's report on how a BSBI training grant helped him get to grips with grasses, sedges and rushes, we now have Tomos' report on how his BSBI training grant enabled him to study orchids in Scotland.Over to Tomos:“I
have a particular interest in the Orchidaceae, their diversity and intricate
beauty, and enjoy caring for the collection of tropical and sub-tropical
orchids at Treborth Botanic Garden.
This gave me the opportunity to travel to Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanic Garden
in southern China, as an intern focusing on the conservation of orchids used in
traditional Chinese medicine, particularly Dendrobium species.

Dactylorhiza maculataImage: T. Jones

"On arriving
home, I realised how unfamiliar I was with our native orchids, and so I have
focused on finding and identifying these during the last two seasons. Here’s my
blogpost about my time finding orchids in Scotland during June."I was fortunate to receive a BSBI Training Grant to
attend the Field Study Council course ‘Wild Orchids of Scotland’ at FSC Kindrogan,
June 19th – 23rd, 2017. I departed
Bangor in N. Wales on the train, ready for a not-so-short journey to Pilochry.
I arrived and enjoyed a fantastic meal with the group at the FSC centre before
we went for a short walk to find Dactylorhiza purpurella (Northern Marsh Orchid).

"Our tutor, Martin Robinson, described an orchid's general morphology, in particular,
features that are important for identification such as: sheathing and
non-sheathing leaves, bracts, the inflorescence (the collection of individual
flowers on the stem) and the structure of individual flowers. Dactylorhiza
purpurella has broad blue-green leaves, which are mostly unspotted.

Gymnadenia borealisImage: T. Jones

"It has a
dense inflorescence of deep magenta flowers with a ‘diamond’ shaped lip
(labellum) which has darker markings. Martin showed us the twisted ovary, the
result of twisting 180° during development – so in fact the flowers are
upside-down!

"Tuesday – as I was told by a few Scots – was an
uncharacteristically sunny and hot day for Scotland. Our first stop was The
Cairnwell to search a hillside of mostly heather for Dactylorhiza viridis (Frog
Orchid) and Neottia cordata (Lesser Twaybade). “Frog!” I heard, and walked
towards the point of excitement to find a beautiful four-legged creature, but
no orchid. "We finally found Frog Orchids on a greener patch, free from heather.
I struggled to see the resemblance to the creature we had just found, but it
was a beautiful orchid nonetheless. It had a hood (formed of sepals and petals)
and a globular spur containing nectar (the only one of the genus to produce
nectar).

Platanthera bifoliaImage: T. Jones

"Our next target was the Lesser Twayblade, and I am ashamed to say that
I found none. Luckily, others had more luck and found several, growing amongst
the heather. A small and distinctive orchid, it was easier to spot its pair of
heart-shaped leaves rather than the inflorescence. "Our next site, Spittal of
Glenshee mire, offered a total of four species: Dactylorhiza incarnata subsp.
incarnata (Early Marsh Orchid), D. maculata (Heath Spotted Orchid), D.
purpurella and Gymnadenia conopsea s.l. (Fragrant Orchid), which was
new for me. I was very excited for our final visit of the day to Stormont Loch,
Blairgowrie, where we were hoping to find Goodyera repens (Creeping Lady’s-Tresses). "This is a species that I certainly wouldn’t find at home, as it is found in northern
and eastern Scotland, northern England and has an unexpected population in
Norfolk. It grows in mature pinewoods, in deep humus of pine needles.
Unfortunately, the flowers were not fully open, but it was possible to see that
they are very hairy!

Neottia nidus-avisImage: T. Jones

"Our
first stop on Wednesday was Loch of Kinnordy, a RSPB reserve, for Neottia ovata
(Common Twayblade). I had seen this species back in North Wales, but not in
such numbers. "We then headed to Forfar, to a wonderful site of numerous Platanthera
bifolia (Lesser Butterfly Orchid), Northern Marsh, Heath Spotted and
Heath Fragrant Orchids. The arrival of rain was a good excuse to sit in the van
and have our lunch.

"We then found Neottia nidus-avis (Bird’s Nest Orchid) in a
small beech woodland. This orchid is a saprophyte (entirely dependent on fungi)
and lacks green chlorophyll, which explains its honey-brown colour. The flowers
are yellowish-brown and the lip has a nectar-producing depression. We
then continued to a further two sites to test our new-found identification
skills.

Pseudorchis albaImage: T. Jones

"Thursday
was our final day of orchid hunting. Our first stop was Straloch Moraines, a
fantastic site for Pseudorchis albida (Small White Orchid) and more Heath
Fragrant Orchids. "The former was rather inconspicuous, at least in my opinion,
but once we had our ‘eye in’, it was found in good numbers. It has a dense inflorescence
of small flowers with whitish or creamy sepals and greener petals, and a lip
which is deeply three-lobed. "We then headed to Pitarrig Meadow, Pitlochry, where
we found D. incarnata subsp. pulchella which is more of a ‘purplish-pink’ than
the ‘flesh pink’ of D. incarnata subsp. incarnata. Pitarrig Meadow also offered some
more of the same species, which gave us the opportunity to again test our new
found ID skills.

Platanthera chloranthaImage: T. Jones

"Our course finished with a visit to Weem Meadow, Aberfeldy,
after seeing Platanthera chlorantha (Greater Butterfly Orchid) at Keltneyburn, which is a Scottish Wildlife Trust reserve. "This was my favourite
site because it was such a beautiful wildflower meadow supporting an abundance
of dancing butterflies. "One feature which distinguishes between Lesser and Greater
Butterfly Orchids are the two pollinia: in the former, the pollinia are
parallel whereas in the latter they are well-separated at the base but taper
inwards towards the tip.

"I
thoroughly enjoyed the course, finding a total of thirteen species and meeting like-minded
orchid enthusiasts.

Dactylorhiza praetermissaImage: T. Jones

"I am now much more confident in identifying our native
orchids, and although I will probably still need to refer to the books from
time to time, at least I now know what characteristics to look for during
identification. "Since returning to North Wales, I have continued orchid hunting
and found Dactylorhiza praetermissa (Southern Marsh Orchid) which is a
relative newcomer to the area and D. x grandis, its hybrid with Dactylorhiza fuchsii (Common Spotted
Orchid). "My thanks go to Martin for a brilliant week,
and to the BSBI for awarding me a training grant". Many thanks to Tomos for telling us what he did with his BSBI training grant.